One of the greatest couturiers of the 20th century, Cristóbal Balenciaga revolutionized the way women dressed. By the early 1930s he had earned a reputation as Spain's leading couturier. In 1936, with the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War, he moved to Paris. The designer, whom Christian Dior acknowledged as his master, took Paris by storm in the late 1940s. He was a master of the perfect cut and his complex constructions, which achieved harmony between line, proportion, style, and wearer, gave his designs an architectural look.

This cocktail dress, with its wraparound bodice and "balloon" skirt, is a great example of Balenciaga's genius. The fitted bodice, with wide gathered shoulder straps and modified "sweetheart" neckline, wraps around the body from the right side, around the back, and then fastens at the right front waist.

The inside of the reversible skirt is made in exactly the same way as the outside. The dress, which is made from an unusually soft taffeta, is trimmed with an oversize bow at the waist.